A Montana Home That Honors the Journey

I’ve always been the sort of person who prefers a clear destination to the uncertain, winding journey. Before I take a risk, I like to know it will end exactly as I envisioned, a perfect plan leading to a perfect outcome. This, you’ve no doubt already surmised, has hindered my ability to see how a detour might actually present a never-before-thought-of possibility. So I marvel at how someone like Bridget Ambrose gracefully embraces experimentation, honors the need for unexpected changes, and understands that her home is essentially a “never-ending art project.” Bridget, whose family loves to go on van trips, is the best kind of road-tripper. She knows the place between where we begin and end up is where the real creative magic happens.

Bridget, an energy medicine intuitive with a healing practice at Be Crow Be, and her husband Mathew, a product design director, spent a year updating their 1932 bungalow in Missoula, MT. Local builders Mast and Co. helped them realize their vision by “incorporating all of the original doors, some original lighting, and mimicking all of the original trim,” while also introducing modern touches. But things didn’t always go as planned. A wall in the room the couple nicknamed “the love room” was supposed to have a built-in platform-style sofa. But when they discovered the wall was needed to hide the HVAC, they got creative and designed a built-in bookshelf and desk instead. The process, says Bridget, taught her patience and helped her to see how with every design tweak a new “energy or vibe emerged to build on.” And then, once the updating process was complete, Bridget found herself wanting to fill the empty spaces in her home as quickly as possible. She soon realized, however, that the emptiness actually gave her time and insight to fulfill her creative vision. It’s this spirit of openness that makes Bridget and Mathew’s home pleasing to the eye and great for spinning vinyl while reclining on rugs under the lights of LOVE (slide 12).

These days, Bridget, Mathew, and their 13-year-old son Ryder like to gather in the kitchen around a custom reclaimed wood dining table. Here they take naps, do homework, work, or curl up with a book. Around the corner a letter board on a floating fir shelf reads, “Love yourself more.” Love is quite literally spelled out in two different places in their home. I can see how a home that lives by love as its motto is able to envision possibilities where others see only road blocks. Love, afterall, is what makes the uncertain, winding journey so darn worthwhile. ––Liberty Lausterer

Photography by Bridget Ambrose 

from Design*Sponge http://www.designsponge.com/2016/11/a-montana-home-that-honors-the-journey.html

from Home Improvment http://notelocreesnitu.tumblr.com/post/153220593734